"No!"
Shih Shaoling finally couldn’t take it anymore.
He clenched his teeth, his face grim.
"The past is the past, and now is now!"
"Yesterday... I’m sorry!"
He mustered the courage to say these three words, even though they’ve been circling in his mind countless times.
Yue Er was a bit confused.
To be honest, she wasn’t used to it, so she mocked.
"Oh! What’s the trick now to fool me?"
"Don’t tell me you’ve had a change of heart!"
Shih Shaoling: "..."
When did he ever change his temperament?
Although he’s stubborn, he never intended to bully her.
The incident with the pepper powder was childhood stuff, it doesn’t count.
Seeing him silent, Yue Er thought she guessed right and sneered.
"Take your medicine powder back, who knows what you mixed in this time? I daren’t use it, and besides, I don’t need it!"
Shih Shaoling was somewhat speechless.
Feeling a bit guilty, he glanced at Yue Er, but still spoke disdainfully.
"Feel free to use it, there’s nothing in it this time, and there won’t be in the future!"
Yue Er’s eyes widened.
"In the future? There’s even a future?"
"What do you... what do you plan to do?"
Shih Shaoling: "..."
Lord above, Earth below, his original intention was clearly: he won’t bully or deceive her anymore in the future.
How did it come out wrong to her?
He couldn’t stand it, but upon reflection, realized he was to blame for this perception.
So, he had nothing more to say, took a deep breath.
"I was wrong about yesterday’s incident, I was just worried about you getting hurt!"
After saying this, he calmly turned and left.
Watching his back, Yue Er felt quite touched inside.
"Not bad, he can speak human words now!"
Only the medicine powder...
She looked at the small abrasion on her arm; she didn’t need it and didn’t want to use it either!
She stuffed it into Ying Luo’s hand and instructed.
"Find a chance to dispose of it later!"
Ying Luo looked at the heavy little bottle in her hand, feeling a bit reluctant.
"Master, it’s obvious this is top-level golden sore medicine, wouldn’t it be a waste to throw it away?"
Yue Er was indifferent.
"If you’re reluctant to throw it, then keep it!"
"Anyway, I don’t want it!"
She’s sick of taking that man’s stuff, no matter how good it is.
Ying Luo knew she couldn’t convince her and thanked her with a smile.
"Thank you, Mistress, for your gift. In the future, I won’t have to be afraid of injuries anymore!"
Yue Er was somewhat speechless.
This girl has been with her for so long, why is she still so naive?
However, by custom, servants indeed shouldn’t use good medicine.
Never mind, let her be!
Yue Er took a deep breath and continued gazing at the serene lake waters.
...
The school was busy with classes, yet Yue Er was leisurely unwinding by the Taiye Pool.
Even if the schoolmaster didn’t report it, the news couldn’t be concealed.
Xia Ruqing and Zhao Junyao both received the news.
Inside Duanning Palace.
"Empress, I saw the Princess by the Taiye Pool!"
Inside Zhaochen Palace.
"Reporting to the Emperor, I just passed by the Taiye Pool and saw the Fourth Princess!"
Xia Ruqing and Zhao Junyao both felt puzzled from afar.
"Shouldn’t Yue Er be in school at this time?"
Xia Ruqing was a bit suspicious.
"What’s going on?"
Originally planning to send someone to investigate, she decided otherwise.
"I’ll go myself! Just an excuse to get out and about!"
On the other side, Zhao Junyao was similarly puzzled.
"Yue Er skipped class?"
He turned to instruct Li Shengan.
"You personally send someone to the school and ask what’s going on!"
"Yes!"
Thus...
Both the Emperor and Empress, one went to Taiye Pool to comfort their daughter, the other sent someone to school to check the situation.
The schoolmaster expressed: I’m under a lot of pressure!
...
Seeing the Empress come over, Yue Er obediently bowed and greeted.
"Mother Empress, why are you here?"
Xia Ruqing smiled: "Heard you’re here, so I came to see you!"
Then she sat down in the pavilion.
The mother and daughter chatted for quite a while; she never asked about her daughter’s skipping class.
In her view, her daughter’s skipping class might not even be an issue.
The same goes for Zhao Junyao.
Li Shengan went to the school to inquire and came back to report.
"Reporting to the Emperor!"
"The schoolmaster also doesn’t know the specifics, only mentioned that today the Fourth Princess seems to be in a bad mood!"
Zhao Junyao breathed a sigh of relief.
"It’s good if there’s no issue!"
Then he lowered his head and continued reading proposals.
In his view, his daughter’s skipping class wasn’t worth mentioning.
...
Returning from Taiye Pool, the smile on Xia Ruqing’s face instantly faded.
She anxiously reclined on the lounge chair, constantly sighing.